At Petworth, in West Sussex, the immense baroque house of 1688 has effaced the Tudor house that preceded it. But the Renaissance history of the place is crucial: it was here that the Percys, Earls of Northumberland — the most powerful Catholic dynasty of the North of England — came, under compulsion, to transfer the centre of their destiny after defying the queen.
The fall of the great Percys of the North
The Percys, Earls of Northumberland, reigned as near-sovereigns over the North of England. In 1569, Thomas Percy, 7th Earl, led the Rising of the North, the uprising of the great Catholic lords against Elizabeth I, in the hope of restoring the Mass and freeing Mary Stuart. The revolt failed, and Thomas Percy was executed in 1572. To break the family's northern power, the Crown forced it to reside in the South: from 1574, the Percys were in a sense confined to Petworth, far from their Northumberland strongholds.
The 'Wizard Earl' and the heraldic memory
Thus Petworth became the new centre of gravity of the dynasty. Among its members, Henry Percy, 9th Earl, nicknamed the 'Wizard Earl' for his passion for the sciences, alchemy and books, marked the place with his restless erudition — he was himself imprisoned in the Tower after the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Of the Tudor house survives notably the 'Percy Window' of the sixteenth century, in the chapel, which combines the arms of the Percys with those of their alliances — the heraldic memory of a dynasty that the Renaissance saw pass from omnipotence to surveillance. To see: the sixteenth-century Percy Window (arms) in the chapel, the medieval chapel and its undercroft, and the painting collection (including Turner).
Did you know?
The 9th Earl of Northumberland was nicknamed the 'Wizard Earl' for his passion for the sciences, astronomy and alchemy, which he practised surrounded by a rich library. This reputation as a man of learning did not protect him: suspected after the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 (a cousin, Thomas Percy, was one of the conspirators), he spent fifteen years a prisoner in the Tower of London.
Notes
Petworth House lies at Petworth, West Sussex; a baroque house and park (designed by Capability Brown) run by the National Trust. The present house dates from 1688-1702; Tudor remains in the chapel. Hours to check.
Quiz
- Who led the Rising of the North in 1569?
- Thomas Percy, 7th Earl of Northumberland
- Robert Dudley
- Francis Drake
- Why did the Percys settle at Petworth?
- Forced to reside in the South after the revolt
- To flee the plague
- For love of the climate
- Who was the 'Wizard Earl'?
- Henry Percy, 9th Earl, a lover of the sciences
- A royal astrologer
- The builder of the baroque house